ARTICLES ABOUT ADIDAS GROUP BY DATE - PAGE 2

NEW DELHI: The two former executives of Reebok India, at the centre of an alleged Rs 870-crore alleged fraud, have accused German sports goods maker Adidas of attempting to hammer down the valuation of the Indian unit, as part of its strategy to reduce its payout to the minority shareholder in the company. Former Reebok India chief executive Subhinder Singh Prem and former COO Vishnu Bhagat have in separate suits filed last month in the Delhi High Court said they were asked to 'carry out certain illegal and unethical actions' by the Adidas Group, such as manipulating accounts, booking irrelevant expenses and cancelling large distributorships, to ensure that the market value of Reebok India fell significantly 'so that a significantly lower amount becomes payable to the exiting Indian joint venture partner'.

NEW DELHI: The country's fraud detection agency, the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), will scrutinise Reebok India's accounts, which is alleged to have committed irregularities, according to German sportswear maker Adidas. The corporate affairs ministry had asked the Registrar of Companies (RoC) to conduct a non-invasive scrutiny of the global retail giant and found "something wrong" in its accounts. "Prima facie, we have found something wrong in their books.

GURGAON: A local court today rejected the anticipatory bail plea of Reebok India's former MD Subhinder Singh Prem and COO Vishnu Bhagat in connection with the Rs 870 crore alleged fraud in the company. The two top former executives' counsel had filed a bail petition, arguing that no amount was fraudulently given to anybody except as "incentive" and "bonus" to the staff and distributors or dealers as per the company's policy and no stocks or goods were siphoned off. On the other hand, Reebok's lawyer contended that it was a huge scam which took place when Prem and Bhagat were at the helm of the company for a long period.

NEW DELHI/GURGAON: In more trouble for Reebok India, the I-T department has launched a probe into its finances and has begun issuing notices to its executives after an alleged Rs 870-crore fraud case was detected by the company against two of its top officials. The Gurgaon police has already constituted a Special Investigation Team ( SIT ) to probe the case. The Income Tax department, which had earlier this month conducted a survey at the Gurgaon office of the sportswear manufacturer, has recently collected additional financial documents including from some of those of the firm based in the country.

NEW DELHI: The Corporate Affairs Ministry today ordered a scrutiny of the books of accounts of sportswear maker Reebok's Indian arm over complaints of an alleged Rs 870-crore fraud. "We have ordered an enquiry under section 234 of the Companies Act, which is a non-invasive scrutiny. The Registrar of Companies (RoC) has been asked to submit its report in three days. Based on the report, we will order further scrutiny," a senior MCA official said. The official said the enquiry was ordered on the basis of a complaint from an investor.

NEW DELHI: Subhinder Singh Prem , the former boss of Adidas in India, has sued his former employer for Rs 15 crore in damages, in a dramatic escalation of hostilities between him and the German giant that have stirred up the usually sedate world of sporting goods MNCs. Prem suggested that Adidas, which earlier this week said unspecified "commercial irregularities" in its Indian operations had forced it to take a Rs 870-crore charge, was fully in the loop on how the company was run. He said the company was not a one-man show and all its financials and accounts were approved by up to five layers of officials.

NEW DELHI: Almost 80 women walked into Reebok's Connaught Place store in New Delhi in the past 40 days, dreaming about firmer butts. Each paid well over 5,000 and walked out with a pair of EasyTone shoes, sold on the promise that wearing them can sculpt better behinds. Today, these women learnt that the shoes won't make their butts any better. Reebok International has agreed to a $25-million settlement, to be paid out in the form of refunds to customers who had bought EasyTone shoes, in response to a complaint by the US government's Federal Trade Commission.

Adidas and Reebok jointly launch about 500 new styles of footwear each year, but this one promises to be special. The shoe called My Coach was launched globally in January 2010 and in its latest version it has more microchips and electronics embedded, technology that transmits heartbeat and other health data from the body directly to a computer. My Coach will be introduced in India by December-January at Rs 7,000 a pop. "The user interface is much stronger in Ver 2.0 because when you go online, the important thing is how you can use the data that is being generated to improve performance.

NEW DELHI: German sportswear maker Adidas today said it has appointed Subhinder Singh Prem , currently Managing Director Reebok India, to head its Indian operations as part of a top level management change. The current Adidas India Managing Director Andreas Gellner will take over responsibility as Managing Director, South East Europe, effective May 1, 2011, the company said in a statement. "..Prem will take over responsibility for our overall business in India effective May 1, 2011," it said.

FRANKFURT: The Olympic Games not only brought gold for athletes and their countries, but also for the companies that outfitted them with their gear. German companies Adidas AG and Puma AG _ the second- and third-biggest makers of athletic apparel, respectively _ both reported increased exposure and demand during the Beijing games which ran Aug. 8-24 in China. The companies, based in Herzogenaurach, trail global leader Nike Inc. Adidas said sales in China increased more than 60 percent in the first half of 2008 making China the second-largest market after the U.S. for the company.